Week Twelve: Fingernails and toenails appear

The fetus is now about 2.5 inches (6cm) length and weighs about 0.7 ounce (20 g).

The feet are almost half an inch (1cm) long.

The fetus starts moving spontaneously.

The face is beginning to look like a baby's face.

The pancreas is functioning and producing insulin.

Fingernails and toenails appear.

The baby can suck his thumb, and get hiccups.

From this week you may well be able to hear the baby's heart beat through a doppler monitor on your tummy. You will notice that the rate is up to 160 a minute, double that of a normal adult.

Your baby now has a chin and a nose and a facial profile. Vocal chords are complete, and the baby can and does sometimes cry silently. The brain is fully formed, and the baby can also feel pain. The fetus may even suck his thumb.

The eyelids now cover the eyes, and will remain shut until the seventh month to protect the delicate optical nerve fibers. The hair is on the head and the fingers and toes have developed soft nails. The kidneys are developed and begin to secrete urine.

The 12 weeks scan [10 weeks fetal age] to the left shows a very active fetus. The mother who can not feel these movements; belly laughs, as she looks at the screen and can see her tiny baby kicking out.

The nuchal translucency (NT) 12 week scan is a routine ultrasound examination carried out at 10 to 14 weeks of gestation.